PIFF 35 Alaska Airlines Audience Award Winners

The Portland International Film Festival is just as much about you, the audience, as it is the films, that’s why we love it when you pick the awardees! Without further ado the winners of this year’s festival are: ALMANYA (Germany) directed by Yasemin Samdereli for Best Narrative Feature and FIRST POSITION (United States) directed by Bess Kargman for Best Documentary Feature and the Best New Directors Award. This year’s Short Film Award goes to German filmmaker Max Zähle for RAJU and the Oregon Short Film Award goes to John Waller for TREEVERSE.

Keep reading for a complete list of winners.

PIFF 35 ALASKA AIRLINES AUDIENCE AWARDS

NARRATIVE FEATURES

1. ALMANYA—WELCOME TO GERMANY/Germany/ Yasemin Samdereli *BEST NARRATIVE AWARD

2. MONSIEUR LAZHAR/ Canada/ Philippe Falardeau

3. IDENTITY CARD/ Czech Republic/ Ondrej Trojan

4. HEADHUNTERS/ Norway/ Morten Tyldum

5. HABANASTATION/ Cuba/ Ian Padrón

6. KING OF DEVIL’S ISLAND/ Norway/ Marius Holst

7. CIRKUS COLUMBIA/ Bosnia/ Danis Tanovic

8. A CAT IN PARIS/ France/ Jean-Loup Felicioli, Alain Gagnol

9. WHERE DO WE GO NOW?/ Lebanon/ Nadine Labaki

10. FREE MEN/ France/ Ismaël Ferroukhi

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

1. FIRST POSITION/ United States/ Bess Kargman *BEST DOCUMENTARY AWARD 

2. TO BE HEARD/ United States/ Roland Legiardi-Laura, Deborah Shaffer, Edwin Martinez

3. JOSÉ Y PILAR/ Portugal/ Miguel Gonçalves Mendes

4. SOMEWHERE BETWEEN/ United States/ Linda Goldstein Knowlton

5. PINK RIBBONS, INC./ Canada/ Léa Pool

BEST NEW DIRECTORS

1. FIRST POSITION/United States/ Bess Kargman *BEST NEW DIRECTORS AWARD

2. ALMANYA—WELCOME TO GERMANY/Germany/ Yasemin Samdereli

3. JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI/United States/ David Gelb

SHORTS

1. RAJU/ Germany/ Max Zähle *BEST SHORT AWARD

2. THE FANTASTIC FLYING BOOKS OF MR. MORRIS / United States/ William Joyce

3. PENTECOST/ Ireland/ Peter McDonald

OREGON SHORTS

1. TREEVERSE/ United States/ John Waller *BEST OREGON SHORT FILM AWARD

2. DEAR PETER, YAKS and DEAR PETER, OATS/ United States/ Orland Nutt

3. SHINE /United States/ Jesse Blanchard